General / Editor / 01 May 2007 /

GOLF FEATURE - Is there a changing of the guard on the European Tour?

Well on the surface in 2007 that very much seems to be the case with the older generation giving way to the upcoming stars of the game.

There have been no fewer than 12 maiden Tour winners in the current campaign which has already thrown up a significant surprise globally with little-known American Zach Johnson claiming the first major of the year, the US Masters at Augusta.

Jose Manuel Lara, Nathan Green, Mikko Ilonen and Alvaro Quiros are hardly names that roll off the tongue but they are amongst a collection of newcomers who have all taken their chance this term by claiming a first-ever European Tour title.

And if the successes of the aforementioned might have been labeled 'shocks' then certainly Pablo Martin-Benavides' history-making triumph at the Estoril Open de Portugal was a bolt from the blue.

In the European Tour's 1,145th event, Martin-Benavides became the first-ever amateur to win on the Tour's international schedule.

Perhaps the writing was on the wall at the turn of the year that this might be a season for surprises when YE Yang captured the first tournament of The 2007 European Tour season when he held off an elite field, including the impressive chasing pack of Major winners Michael Campbell, Retief Goosen and Tiger Woods, to win the HSBC Champions tournament in Shanghai.

A week later Lara claimed the UBS Hong Kong Open, before Justin Rose's win in the MasterCard Masters saw him sandwiched between successes for Green and Quiros at the New Zealand Open and Alfred Dunhill Championship respectively.

It meant that the opening five tournaments of the new European Tour campaign had served up four first-time winners, an amazing statistic that had many scratching their heads as to the reasons why.

Gone it seems are the days when Colin Montgomerie, Ernie Els, Vijay Singh and Goosen would dominate the winner's list on the European Tour and with it the order of merit as a result.

There are suggestions that's down to the fact many of the big guns are being lured across the pond to compete for the mega bucks on offer on the PGA Tour and to some extent that is the case.

But there's no doubt that there has been a significant improvement in those emerging on the Tour.

Amateur winner Martin-Benavides is without doubt one for the future. He announced himself on the world stage at the Tour's Canarias Open de Espana in 2003, when he led the tournament going into the final round as a 17-year-old schoolboy, but finished in a tie for 22nd place.

Almost four years later, Martin-Benavides finished the job in emphatic style to post a winning score of seven under par 277, one stroke better than Frenchman Raphael Jacquelin, who was at least able to console himself with the EUR208,330 first prize.

Jacquelin is another who is expected to now go on and challenge for the Majors should his progress continue. He now has the experience at the age of 32 as he looks to convert Tour successes into Major wins.

After beginning his career on the Challenge Tour he graduated to the European Tour in 1997 but it wasn't until 2005 that he claimed his first title at the Madrid Open on his 238th Tour start.

But having then claimed his second victory at the BMW Asian Open in late April he's starting to come to prominence.

And perhaps another name to now consider as a genuine contender is Mikka Ilonen, who, after six years on the pro circuit, is also now starting to impress. He won his first Tour event this term at the Indonesia Open, becoming the first Finn to achieve the feat.

There's little doubt though that the opportunities of this trio, plus a number of others, has been enhanced by the absence of several leading stars at European Tour events during the current campaign.

Henrik Stenson presently leads the order of merit but the Swede - a two-time winner on the Tour this season - has only played in seven tournaments this year. Instead he's splitting his appearances with the PGA Tour and is currently as high as sixth in the World rankings as a result.

England's own Justin Rose has featured only three times on the European Tour this term while Padraig Harrington may be the defending order of merit champion, but has restricted his outings to just five in the present campaign.

It's a trend being followed by fellow Europeans and Ryder Cup stars Sergio Garcia (6), Ian Poulter (4) Luke Donald (4).

Of course, it does offer chances for a fresh name to emerge and make his mark on the game, but equally it makes life difficult for the golfing punter who, without a crystal ball, might be hard-pressed to select which of the new-boys will next 'come of age'.

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